IQO REPORTS ON INVESTIGATIONS AND PROJECTS. 



that the recent remarkable observations of Dr. Harvey Gushing, of Baltimore, 

 to the effect that the removal of the hypophysis increased enormously the 

 sugar tolerance of dogs have shown that in all probability there is some inti- 

 mate relationship between this gland and sugar metabolism. In the investi- 

 gation at the Nutrition Laboratory the observations have been confined to the 

 total metabolism as measured by the carbon-dioxide production, both before 

 and after the removal of the gland. A number of important observations 

 have been made on different dogs, and the first report on this research will 

 be prepared and issued shortly. The study of the sugar tolerance of two 

 women whose metabolism was supposed to be influenced by an abnormal 

 hypophysis has also been made, and future studies are planned with refer- 

 ence to the relationship between sugar tolerance and the hypophysis. 



THE INFLUENCE OF THE INGESTION OF PROTEIN ON METABOLISM IN DOGS 

 WITH DEFICIENT NITROGEN ASSIMILATION. 



Through the kindness of Dr. Joseph H. Pratt, two dogs from which the 

 pancreas had been removed by Dr. F. T. Murphy were made available for a 

 study at the Nutrition Laboratory of the influence on metabolism of varying 

 quantities of meat. These dogs, which had been actively studied for several 

 years by Dr. Pratt, have a very low assimilation for protein, absorbing but 

 25 to 30 or 40 per cent of meat ingested. Under these conditions the oppor- 

 tunity presented for studying the influence of the ingestion of food on metab- 

 olism is ideal. According to the views of some investigators, the increase in 

 metabolism following the ingestion of food is due to the work of digestion, 

 movements of the intestinal tract, and the glandular secretion. According 

 to other investigators, it is due to the specific dynamic action of protein ; i. e., 

 something is absorbed out of the protein of the food, which is carried through 

 the blood-circulating system and there stimulates the cells to greater activity. 

 Inasmuch as these dogs had a deficient protein assimilation, it was believed 

 that the work of digestion would be somewhat greater than normal, since a 

 larger bulk of food would necessarily be forced through the intestinal tract. 

 If, therefore, the work of digestion increases the metabolism, we should ex- 

 pect a larger heat output than with normal dogs. On the other hand, if the 

 increase in metabolism is due to the specific dynamic action of protein, we 

 should expect to find the results only about one-third of normal, since the 

 assimilation of protein by these dogs is approximately one-third the assimi- 

 lation by normal dogs. The results are not yet ready for drawing final 

 deductions, however, and the experiments are still in progress. 



THE CALIBRATION OF THE BICYCLE ERGOMETER. 



In connection with the researches at Wesleyan University, a special form 

 of bicycle ergometer was devised and used, and the results obtained with it 

 have been published. At that time the calibration of the bicycle ergometer 

 was carried out by means of a respiration chamber, which was much too 

 large for the best results with an instrument of this kind. Recently a careful 



